Mullin v. Al Otro Lado · ¶153

IIRIRA addressed this issue by “abolish[ing] the distinction between exclusion and deportation procedures and creat[ing] a uniform proceeding known as ‘removal,’” which would apply to all noncitizens regardless of whether they were arriving or already inside the country. Vartelas v. Holder, 566 U. S. 257, 262 (2012). To facilitate this transition, “Congress made ‘admission’ the key word, and defined admission to mean ‘the lawful entry of the alien into the United States after inspection and authorization by an immigration officer.’” Ibid. It correspondingly modified §1225(a) by defining an “applicant for admission” as any noncitizen who was either “present in the United States who has not been admitted or who arrives in the United States,” §1225(a)(1), and then adding that inspection is required of all noncitizens “who are applicants for admission or otherwise seeking admission,”…

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